AROOSTOOK COUNTY, ME — Second-grade students from several Aroostook County schools recently completed a six-month lesson in finances which culminated in a $320 donation to Special Olympics.
Last fall, during International Credit Union week in October, County second-grade classrooms were invited to take an educational tour of NorState Federal Credit Union facilities in Madawaska, Van Buren, Eagle Lake, Ashland, Fort Kent and Presque Isle to learn about saving money, bank transactions and the ins and outs of a financial institution.
Each student went home with a workbook, a token and a classroom savings bank.
NorState challenged each classroom teacher and students to save their spare change throughout the winter months and raise money for the Aroostook Special Olympics group through credit unions’ Youth Month in April.
To bring to a close the month-long celebration of youth savers, bank personnel revisited each classroom, presented a “mini” financial literacy lesson about saving, spending and giving, and gave each student a bank to bring home that contains individual compartments for despositing coins into “save,” “spend” and “give.” Staff urged students to continue learning about saving money, how to responsibly spend on needs versus wants and how to be charitable as well.
The second-graders proceeded to donate their classroom bank savings and pool them all together for a donation to Special Olympics. The total collected by the students was more than $320. NorState matched a portion of their savings as promised, for a total donation to Special Olympics Aroostook of $550.
To continue raising funds for Special Olympics, the Madawaska, Presque Isle and Fort Kent branches are holding a year-long fundraiser where all fees collected from those using their coin sorters will be donated to Special Olympics in January 2018.
Classrooms participating in the financial literacy effort included Madawaska Elementary, Dr. Levesque Elementary in Frenchville, Fort Kent Elementary, Presque Isle’s Pine Street Elementary, Eagle Lake Elementary, Van Buren Elementary and Ashland District School.
Schools interested in financial education instructions or presentations for any grade level amy contact the marketing department at NorState FCU by calling 1 (800) 804-7555.
